On Steam, Dabrowski emphasized that he doesn’t intend “for this to be an enormous wait. The exact date will be announced closer to launch.” Reasons for the delay range from the game’s large, open-ended nature to being the only programmer on the project. Though October 22nd seemed viable in July, “Ultimately, despite my best efforts, I felt the game needed a bit more time in the oven.

“My sincere apologies for the delays. I fully understand how annoying it can be to look forward to something only to have the rug pulled. That’s why we won’t announce any more specific dates until it’s a 100% lock.” Nevertheless, Dabrowski considers it to be “a lot closer to being early access-ready, as the game’s foundations are pretty solid.”

As for the previously announced playtest, the demo replaces that and features the same planned content. It’s an alpha build, which means some content may not make it into the full release. The demo starts on an island from the “main landmass”, and players must take down the Mayor or gain their favor.

Of course, as with the first game, players can tackle this in any way they see fit. There are multiple classes, and the world is randomly generated (though some island properties remain static). Controller support isn’t available but it will be added later, so stay tuned for updates.

The premise involves taking down a corrupt president, and you have complete freedom. Create a zombie pandemic, build a business empire or even bring on some vampires to help you. If you’re keen on just chilling out and living in the world, that’s also possible.

There are dozens of classes and unique characters with different traits, weapons and even vehicles to utilize. It’s wacky, sure, but that ingenuity and immersive sim gameplay is the appeal.

With maps over 10,000 times the size of the first game and featuring a fully destructible environment with cities, caves, islands, and more, Streets of Rogue 2 promises a more expansive experience. Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.

Microsoft has announced some new titles for Xbox Game Pass this month, each coming under the ID@Xbox. These include Night Call, which is available today and sees a cab driver in Paris fighting to solve a mystery. Though it released for PC last year, this will be the adventure title’s debut on Xbox One.

Other big names include Observation from No Code, better known for Stories Untold. It takes place in a space station where the crew has gone missing. Only Dr. Emma Fisher remains to solve the mystery but that’s not your role. You play as S.A.M., the station’s AI, and must help Emma (while also figuring out what’s going on internally). Observation will be available tomorrow for Xbox One and PC subscribers of Xbox Game Pass.

Then there’s Sabotage Studio’s retro homage The Messenger which is coming to Xbox One tomorrow. It stars a ninja trying to save his world from demons and jumps back and forth between 8-bit and 16-bit gameplay. Streets of Rogue might also be worth checking out as an immersive sim/rogue-lite RPG with free-roaming AI that will react dynamically to your decisions.